Front Page of the (Very) Local Paper

Not sure if anyone had seen this yet, but I sat down the other day to enjoy a morning bagel and coffee and this horse racing story was on the cover of the Palo Alto Daily News.

NTRA Premier Pick 4

Even though Saturday's national Pick 4 races are from "exclusive tracks", looks like most ADW's will be taking the wager on their sites.

So if you normally can't play Keeneland and/or Oaklawn, you will be able to wager on the races featured in that wager.

It does seem a bit strange though that NTRA.com isn't promoting the wager on their site....they did send out a mailer, but maybe an icon or a highlighted news story promoting it?

Maybe I missed it....

$1.5 Billion Wagered Legally in US in 2007

Very interesting stats posted on Bloodhorse today. $1.5+ billion legally wagered in the states in 2007. I guess the fact it doesn't even take into account the evil offshores and these numbers blow my mind even more.

Triple Crown dot com?

We were talking about a project here at work the other day, when it was thrown out to me to find a "Triple Crown logo".

Several days later, I was able to locate www.triplecrown.com - here's the link, check it out.

At least it's an American Company that owns the domain,right? I mean, the last time I checked, all three legs of the Triple Crown did take place in the United States....um, ok, maybe it's not.

Ever trusty Wikipedia says,

Also, as of May 21, 2005, the VISA Credit Card company officially withdrew its sponsorship of the U.S. Triple Crown, starting in 2006.[citation needed] It relieves VISA of paying the $5 million bonus to the owner of the horse that wins the Triple Crown. Triple Crown Productions is now sponsoring the races, as of 2006. The $5 million bonus remains intact.

Some[attribution needed] believe VISA withdrew its sponsorship as a result of the New York Racing Association's decision to break with the other two tracks on a television contract. On October 4, 2004, NYRA announced the American Broadcasting Company and ESPN would hold television rights to the Belmont Stakes, breaking from Triple Crown Productions' deal with NBC Sports[citation needed]. NBC Sports holds the broadcasting rights to the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes until 2010. Triple Crown Productions was formed in 1986 with ABC; prior to that, the individual racing associations made their own deals with the TV networks (ABC and CBS).

Ahhh, so Triple Crown Productions is now in charge of "The Triple Crown". Those guys should have something I can use.....

Let's see what my Google-machine search turns up for Triple Crown Productions: GOOGLE SEARCH FOR TRIPLE CROWN PRODUCTIONS All righty then now we're getting somewhere....Google tells me there is something called, "Triple Crown Challenge", (Carmen SanDiego would be proud) Check out this informative, interactive, 2008-ready website that comes up as the #1 search when looking for "Triple Crown".

A quick Google of the contact phone number listed gives the following results

You know what? I'm exhausted already. Clearly this was a fruitless effort. However, in my quest to live a more positive life, it is the unbelievable "upside potential" of this sport that makes me super excited to wake up everyday and use my brain to assist in bringing this industry up to the top - Where everybody is a winner.

If anyone has (or knows of) a 2008 Triple Crown logo, please feel free to send it along or direct me towards it.

UPDATED: So maybe I'm a little rusty at this blogging thing after being away for a while. I did see there was an email address at the bottom and the domain is @kyderby.com hmmmm. Instead of bitching and leaving it out in the ether, I've reached out via email to see who is on the other end. Maybe there is a light at the end of this tunnel after all...

Arlington Park has a New Website

Check out Arlington's new website.

This follows in the footsteps of the last week's re-design of ChurchillDowns.com.

Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment section. Or not.

A Little AvgReDesign

Just thought I would give the site a little freshening up. Still needs to be tweaked around, but thought it was time for some small change.

As an aspiring and 3-for-3 (3-3-0-0) claiming owner (I even got my Calif. Owners license a few weeks back - thanks to TBB for facilitating that process) I found this post over at fellow TBA blog "Owning Racehorses" extremely enjoyable. Congrats to the Grevelis Team!

Owning horses is super fun and a great way to get more folks involved (apologies for stating the obvious)

Great racing coming up this weekend.....

Poker and Horses..Whowuddathunkit

Most in the horse racing media - MSM AND NMSM - figured this was not worth mentioning. I can understand that it may not be such a huge story (as far as horseplayers on a grand scale go), but it still is worthy of more than just a mention in the Bloodhorse. I'm going to go ahead and post the information myself as I think it is pretty cool.

We repost, you decide:

TWINSPIRES.COM PARTNERS WITH POKER STAR PHIL HELLMUTH FOR ‘ULTIMATE DERBY PLAYER'S WEEKEND'

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (March 27, 2008) - TwinSpires.com, the official advance deposit wagering service for Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ: CHDN) is teaming with 11-time "World Series of Poker" champion Phil Hellmuth Jr. to deliver the "Ultimate Kentucky Derby Players Weekend."

Players who sign-up for TwinSpires.com by April 12 will be entered in a random drawing to win both a VIP trip for two to the 134th running of the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands on Saturday, May 3 and a seat at Hellmuth's table at the "Kentucky Derby Poker Championship," a pro-celebrity poker charity event at Caesars Indiana that evening.

The Kentucky Derby Poker Championship, a $2,500 buy-in tournament hosted by Hellmuth and fellow professional poker player Robert Williamson III, will feature several other high profile celebrities and poker players who are scheduled to be in town for the Kentucky Derby. The Kentucky Derby Poker Championship will benefit the international Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Centre, the Health and Climate Foundation, and the Robby Albarado Foundation, a new organization founded by jockey Robby Albarado that assists homeless and socially and economically disadvantaged residents in the Louisville, Ky. area.

The drawing for the winner of the "Ultimate Kentucky Derby Player's Weekend" will be conducted on Sunday, April 13. New members must sign-up for their TwinSpires.com accounts by April 12 to be eligible for the drawing. New account holders must use the promotion code TSPOKER to be included in the prize drawing.

"I'm really excited to be co-hosting this event which is not only associated with one of the great American traditions in the Kentucky Derby, but will also help call attention to the issue of climate change and other important concerns," said Hellmuth. "TwinSpires.com has put together a tremendous prize package and there is no doubt the winner is going to enjoy the ultimate Kentucky Derby experience."

"TwinSpires.com is thrilled to offer up this once-in-a-lifetime Kentucky Derby experience while also supporting such worthy causes," said Jeremy Clemons, TwinSpires.com's vice president of Marketing. "The combination of being a VIP guest at the world's greatest horse race before going head-to-head that evening with the one of the world's best poker players is an experience that is truly unique. We believe it will be attractive to both horseplayers who enjoy poker and poker players who are interested in learning more about horse racing."

Customers may open a TwinSpires account and wager through their TwinSpires accounts online at www.twinspires.com or via telephone by dialing 1-877-SPIRES-1 (1-877-774-7371). A $50 initial deposit is required to open a TwinSpires account, there is no minimum deposit amount after that. Customers may deposit funds into their TwinSpires accounts at any time via their phone, the TwinSpires Web site or postal mail. TwinSpires charges no fees to register, wager or to maintain an account, and it offers live video streaming of races and free race replays to all wagering customers.

TwinSpires.com (www.twinspires.com) is the official advance deposit wagering service for Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ: CHDN) and its family of racetracks, as well for the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks. TwinSpires.com is a wholly owned subsidiary of Churchill Downs Incorporated and offers wagering on races from Churchill Downs, Santa Anita, Gulfstream Park, Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, Pimlico Race Course, Lone Star Park, Golden Gate Fields, Laurel Park and other popular racing venues. TwinSpires is headquartered in Mountain View, Calif., and operates a wagering hub in Oregon.

Churchill Downs Incorporated ("Churchill Downs"), headquartered in Louisville, Ky., owns and operates world-renowned horse racing venues throughout the United States. Churchill Downs' four racetracks in Florida, Illinois, Kentucky and Louisiana host many of North America's most prestigious races, including the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks, Arlington Million, Princess Rooney Handicap and Louisiana Derby. Churchill Downs racetracks have hosted seven Breeders' Cup World Championships. Churchill Downs also owns off-track betting facilities and has interests in various advance deposit wagering, television production, telecommunications and racing services companies, including a 50-percent interest in the national cable and satellite network HorseRacing TVTM, that support the Company's network of simulcasting and racing operations. Churchill Downs trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol CHDN and can be found on the Internet at www.churchilldownsincorporated.com.

****end release****

The poker world sure has liked this "story" - here, here and here.

Can't Wait to Get Back to Blogging

To many things going on - personally, professionally, etc. - not to start blogging again. I've been away for a while, removed from regularly blogging, and am very excited to get back to posting more regularly.

Ready or not....